Snow and cold to blast central, eastern USA

Oct. 22, 2013
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A golf course is covered in snow on Sunday in Isle, Minn. / St. Cloud Times

by Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

by Doyle Rice, USA TODAY

The coldest air of the season is poised to sweep across the central and eastern USA over the next few days. In fact, most of the nation to the east of the Rockies should see well below-average temperatures for the remainder of the week and into the weekend.

Temperatures will be more typical of mid-November than mid-October.

Thermometer readings dipped below freezing in Chicago Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service. Many spots in northern Illinois were in the 20s.

In the upper Midwest on Tuesday, some light snow will accompany the cold blast. In Chicago, a mix of rain and snow is in the forecast for Tuesday, according to AccuWeather. This would be the Windy City's first flakes since last April.

The last time the city had a measurable October snowfall was on Oct. 12, 2006, when 0.3 of an inch fell, AccuWeather reports.

Light snow will also whiten the ground across portions of Iowa, Indiana and Michigan on Tuesday. Little significant accumulation is expected.

The snow will continue on Wednesday through at least Friday in the eastern Great Lakes and in the higher elevations of the Appalachians, where a few inches are possible, reports AccuWeather meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski.

Overnight low temperatures will bottom out in the 20s across much of the upper Midwest this week. The chill will also expand into the Eastern Seaboard on Wednesday and into the Deep South by Thursday, with low temperatures in the 30s as far south as Mississippi and Georgia, according to forecasts from the Weather Channel.

The first game of the World Series will be played under frigid conditions Wednesday evening in Boston, with temperatures in the low 40s and brisk northwesterly winds. Temperatures could rival some of the lowest readings in World Series history, Pydynowski says.

While the central and eastern USA shivers through a November preview this week, most of the West will enjoy very warm temperatures and clear skies.